Mechanic’s Tale: Warranties

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Mechanic's Tale: Mechanics in the ‘Hood by Douglas Flint (9/15/2003)
You don’t see every car repairman in a professional shop — and that’s a good thing.

One of the great lures of buying a new showroom car rather than, say, a late-model used car (which is almost always an economically superior decision), is that if anything goes wrong with your new car, for a period of time you know you’re 100 percent covered, almost.

I have found that women in particular tremble at the thought of buying a two-year-old car with 20,000 miles on it and discovering hidden problems. Never mind that with all the new computer services you can trace the history of any car, or that “rolling back the odometer” is not only impossible but a death penalty offense in five southern states — they want that new-car security blanket, and will pay a huge premium to get it.

New car warranties used to be all over the map, but now at least the basic coverage is fairly consistent. I believe all the major manufacturers currently have three-year, 36,000-mile bumper-to-bumper coverage. That means that if anything breaks or wears out (except the tires, which are covered by the tire manufacturer), you’re covered for the repair, the towing, and even a rental car in some cases.

The confusion begins

After that things can get confusing and not so certain. For instance, the federal government mandates a certain warranty on all emission parts and — believe me — that includes anything that makes the car run or affects the running of the car. But that’s for only two years or 24,000 miles, which is less than the basic warranty coverage. Thanks for nothing.

Then there are powertrain warranties. Typically these warranties will cover an engine or transmission failure for an extended period (seven years or 70,000 miles seems typical). These warranties will help you a lot if you suffer a catastrophic engine or transmission failure. Yeah, you’ll pay at least a couple hundred bucks before it’s through (ignore the $50 or $100 deductible, there are always extras), but it is still better than the $3000-$4000 you would spend otherwise.

Which brings me to my next point. Warranties are only as good as the people and companies who issue them. Once you’re beyond your bumper-to-bumper coverage, there is a great deal of discretion both in the shop and at the corporate level as to what is covered and what’s not, and the incentive is not always in your favor.

For instance, a customer will pay a higher labor time sometimes by as much as 50 percent more than the manufacturer will pay. If you were the mechanic doing the job, would you rather get the four hours from Mr. Jones or the 2.5 hours DaimlerChrysler will grudgingly give you? 

Words and warranties

So much of who pays is in how things get worded, you see. Proximity could be a factor. We’ve seen a number of late-Nineties Jeeps with premature differential failures (any differential failure is premature). It’s an awfully expensive repair, and I asked my friend Joe from the upscale gas station in his high-dollar neighborhood what he was doing with them. He said his local dealer had covered them all under warranty. But in my sad little strip of Route 1, none of them are covered. Is it coincidence, or does Jeep not want to try the patience of attorneys, doctors, and IRS investigators? At any rate, your relationship with your dealer may wind up being very important, so don’t drive 100 miles out of your area to save $400 on a $28,500 vehicle, and then go to the dealer around the block and expect gold-plated warranty service. When I worked in a dealer service department, we always put our customers at the head of the line, and went to bat for them with the manufacturer when the going got rough.

As for extended warranties, the ones that cover everything are fairly expensive. I think my neighbor paid $2000 for the extended warranty on her Jeep. That’s a lot, but people do like security. That was a factory warranty by the way, and I’m sure it will be honored. There are also aftermarket warranties and you really have to know what you’re buying and from whom. The insurance company Geico, for instance, sells extended warranties and seems to honor them fairly well and honestly. But another company in the warranty business, who started out selling automotive fluid additives, seems to delight in making sure they will never have to honor a warranty.

Overall, you would probably be better off putting the money you would spend on a warranty in a bank, but I think in a lot of cases the warranty is sold for a few dollars more on a car payment or an insurance bill, and no one will really take $2000 and lock it in a bank account for car repairs only, so in that sense the warranty may not be a bad idea. Especially if raising $3000 on a day’s notice is a problem. It can be for me sometimes.

Doug Flint owns and operates Tune-Up Technology, a garage in Alexandria, Va.